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Volvo’s Venture in the Coupe Segment
Volvo, one of the world’s best known car manufacturers, have mass produced cars in the past that are boxy in design. This design is employed to further protect the car’s occupants in cases of crashes or collisions. Through the years, the boxy design remained unchanged - that is until ten years ago when the Sweden-based car manufacturer started developing designs that moved away from their boxy traditional design without sacrificing the rigidity and toughness of their cars.
For a decade now, Volvo has started to change the way their car looks to appeal to younger buyers that they are hoping to tap into. These more conventional and stylish exterior designs are evident in their newer models like their first ever compact car, the coupe that is the Volvo C30.
The Volvo C30 was just recently unveiled at the Montreal International Auto Show and it is the company’s first entry to the compact car segment. This move by the company to venture in the said market segment is to hook the generation of younger car buyers to their brand. This is because they hope that this group of buyers will be loyal not only to the Volvo C30 but to the Volvo brand as a whole.
Their marketing strategy of going back to the Montreal Auto Show after two years of absence shows their dedication to a full-blown marketing campaign of the coupe. This is followed by quirky Web advertisements that are aimed to catch the attention of the young car buyers. Their Freewill ad campaign shows their confidence on the design and development of their newest car in the market. They hope that such marketing ploys would make the Volvo C30 rise to the top of its class as fast as a power Volvo antenna can be raised.
The car’s stylish exterior design is not the only good thing about the car though - its interior rivals that of their toughest competitors. The four-seater coupe’s interior centerpiece is its floating center stack which has become one of the more talked about feature of the car. Space inside the car is adequate for the driver and the front seat passenger while the rear seats are not what you would call comfortable since getting in the back and sitting there for even a short distance will be a challenge for most grownups. Cargo space is a mere 10 cubic feet, but to compensate for this, the second row of seats can be folded down flat and this will increase the coupe’s cargo capacity to 32 cubic feet.
The car was given a powerplant of a five-cylinder turbocharged engine to give it a performance level at par with its competitors. The 218 horsepower being provided by the souped up engine finds their way to the coupe’s wheels either via a six-speed manual or a five-speed automatic transmission. Both the automatic and the manual gearbox are precision engineered to facilitate smooth gear shifting which is one vital aspect in optimizing the engine’s full potential. The power being produced by the car’s engine is capable of propelling the Volvo C30 to 60 miles per hour from a standstill in about 6.6 seconds. Such power can also give the car a top speed of 146 miles per hour.
With that much power coming from the engine, noise and vibration may pose a threat to the occupants’ comfort, but thanks to the design and construction of the car’s frame both noise and vibrations are cancelled. To further add to the comfort of the driver and the passenger, the car’s suspension system can be configured to adapt to road conditions.
The system also comes with two different settings which are Comfort and Dynamic. Other systems are also given much thought in the design process where the result is a good combination of high performance parts that works harmoniously together that gives the Volvo C30 a great performance level.
About the Author: Glady Reign is a 32 year old is a consultant for an automotive firm based in Detroit, Mi. She is a native of the motor city and grew up around cars hence her expertise in the automotive field.
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